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Explicit Leader Behaviour Charisma Scale Development: Call for Collaborators

The Leadership & Values across Cultures project was initiated in 1997 to study the preferences for leader behaviour of businesspeople using Behavioural and Contingency theories across culture areas*. Through informal recruitment and word of mouth referrals, a consortium of about 200 academics, practitioners, and students have formed a voluntary association to encourage and cooperate in research and publication. Research topics are driven by the individual participants, and projects are self-funded by the researchers. Romie Littrell at Auckland University of Technology (crossculturalcentre@yahoo.com) is facilitator of the group and consults with researchers and students on survey instrument selection, research design, data transcription, and experimental analysis and reporting.

In 2001 the project was expanded to relate leader behaviour preferences to cultural value dimensions. Subsequently we have begun a project to produce a reliable, cross-culturally validated, and shorter version of a leader behaviour description questionnaire, the LBDQ-CC, working from the Leader Behaviour Description Questionnaire XII as a starting point.

We have now begun an endeavour to develop a multicultural Leader Charismatic Behaviour Scale to integrate into the new LBDQ-CC, with the initial study completed in Turkey.

The objective of this aspect of the overarching project is to produce and validate the scale across culture areas within and between national borders.

The first task is to conduct literature research defining culture areas within and across borders. Then we will begin decentring the scale. We would like for the local collaborators to review the literature related to charismatic leadership in their culture area, and produce a set of items in their local language, and translate it to English. Surveys will be designed, data collected and analysed, and publications generated. The benefit to collaborators, other than advancing knowledge, is meeting whatever publication quota expectations you have or are subjected to. We will all need to consult frequently.

Should you be interested in participating reply to this email. I'll appreciate your identifying your organisation, city, and country. Please do not change the subject line.

*Culture Areas, see:

Hargreaves, A. G. (2000). The Challenges of Multiculturalism: Regional and Religious Differences In France Today. In W. Kidd & S. Reynolds (Eds.), Contemporary French Cultural Studies. pp. 95 - 110. London, UK: Arnold.

Harris, Marvin (1968). The Rise of Anthropological Theory, Thomas Y. Crowell Company: New York, NY, USA.

Holmes, H. W. (1914). Areas of American Culture Characterization Tentatively Outlined as an Aid in the Study of the Antiquities, American Anthropologist, 26(19): 413-446.

Huo, Y Paul & Randall, Donna M. (1991). Exploring Subcultural Differences In Hofstede's Value Survey: The Case Of The Chinese. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 8(2):159-173.

Mason, Otis T. (1895). Influence of Environment upon Human Industries or Arts, Smithsonian Report, pp.  636-666. Smithsonian Institute: Washington DC, USA.

Meggers, Betty J. (1954). Environmental Limitation on the Development of Culture. American Anthropologist, New Series, 56(5, Part 1), 801-824.

Ralston, D.A. Yu, K.C., Wang, X., Terpstra, R.H. and He, W. (1996). The Cosmopolitan Chinese Manager: Findings of a Study on Managerial Values Across Six Regions of China, Journal of International Management, 2: 79-109.